


Forgive me, son

by imaginativemind29



Series: Whumptober 2020 [7]
Category: DreamWorks Dragons (Cartoon), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Emotional pain, Guilt, Tears, abandoned, baby hiccup, hiccup!whump, whumptober2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:00:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26893327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginativemind29/pseuds/imaginativemind29
Summary: After Valka is taken away by a dragon, Stoick is convinced he cannot raise their child on his own.
Relationships: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III & Stoick the Vast
Series: Whumptober 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947154
Comments: 8
Kudos: 37
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Forgive me, son

**Author's Note:**

> Written for whumptober day 8: Where did everybody go?/Abandoned
> 
> Hope you like it :)

Hiccup woke to the sensation of being lifted out of his crib. Bright green eyes blinked open and he cooed as he recognized a familiar face framed by red hair. He reached out a tiny hand, catching a strand of the funny hair in his fist and tugged.

The friendly face of his father huffed as he detangled Hiccup's fingers from his beard and he reached out to touch the man's nose instead. It felt different than the last time, moist to the touch and Hiccup made a gurgling sound as he explored his father's face in curiosity.

"Hiccup," Stoick whispered, his eyes red and puffy, "Such a little Hiccup you are...so tiny...so weak and vulnerable..." He let one large finger trail the rosy cheek of the babe and sniveled.

"My son...I have waited so long for you to come. Everything should have been perfect. I thought you would come out of your mother's womb a true Viking, strong and fit to one day step in my shoes. But look at you...you are nothing like me...you are not a Viking and ... and whenever I look at you all I can see is her... how am I supposed to raise you without your mommy, hm? You would suffer, you would never be accepted...I can't allow that to happen."

Hiccup didn't know what his father's words meant but he sensed a deep wave of sadness coming off him and when his fingers were removed from his father's nose, his face scrunched up and he started to fuss.

"Shsh, it's alright. I'm gonna find a peaceful place for you and before you know what's happening, you'll be with your mommy again."

Hiccup was rocked gently back and forth with each of his father's steps and long before Stoick reached the edge of the woods he had fallen back into the pure sleep of the innocent.

He woke again to a cold breeze brushing his cheek and when he opened his eyes he blinked up into the cold night sky. His breath came out in funny little clouds and he reached out, wide-eyed in an attempt to touch them.

Several heartbeats passed by and the coldness of the ground was seeping through the blankets he was wrapped in. He wriggled about uncomfortably and made a sound to make himself known.

He whimpered and cooed, waiting for the friendly face of his father to appear - but no one came.

His little heart began to beat faster and he cried louder.

There was a pain in his belly, sharp and stinging and he was growing cold, so cold.

Why was no one coming?

His skin craved cuddles, his mind craved the rocking sensation of being carried by his father, his belly craved the warm fullness of milk. But none of that came. No one answered his screams.

Hiccup was wailing by now, his face red and body shaking violently from both the cold and exertion. Terror held his little heart in an iron grip, the feeling too strong and scary for him to process.

But he could do nothing to ease the pain, nothing to help himself and so he did the only thing in his power and continued to scream.

Stoick wrapped his fur coat tighter around himself as he trudged down the forest path that led to the village. His son's screams would haunt him for countless nights to come.

No. Not his son - just a hiccup. He needed to remind himself of that. 

Still the feeling of guilt clutched heavily at his heart and he felt the urge to cover his ears with his hands so he wouldn't have to hear the babies cries, growing more distant withe every step he took. He didn't though, he didn't deserve to shut out what he'd done. He deserved to suffer.

When Hiccup had been born, Stoick was convinced that he and Valka could raise him, even if he was a runt. But everything was different now. Valka was dead, taken away and killed by a blasted dragon and it was all his fault. He hadn't been there, he'd failed to protect her.

He couldn't stand the thought of losing Hiccup the same way and surely he would, sooner or later. Berk was a dangerous place to grow up and only the strongest children survived. Hiccup was not one of them. In the end it was mercy to leave him to die a peaceful death in the cold rather than see him be ripped apart by a dragon or consumed by flames. It had to be mercy...it had to be.

A strong gust of wind tore at Stoick's clothes and suddenly the babies cries faded. He stopped and strained his ears. Not a sound.

Was...was he?

Stoick's heart hammered hard in his chest and his throat closed up. The icy wind grew stronger yet, brought with it the first flakes of snow. They stung in his eyes as Stoick looked up into the dark night sky, no star could be seen just clouds. But then, just for a second, the picture of his sweet wife appeared before his inner eye. She was smiling. She was holding their baby boy.

"I...I can't do this..." he gasped, feeling the tears on his cheeks freeze on the wind. "I can't..."

Before his conscious mind caught up with what he was doing, he turned on his heel and ran. He ran like he never ran before, ignoring the twigs and branches that caught in his clothes and cut his skin.

He reached the clearing where he left Hiccup behind and fell to his knees next to the little bundle. The baby had his eyes closed and lay very still, a fine layer of snow covering his blanket and face. He was pale and cold.

"Oh. Oh no." Stoick cried, "What have I done?" Quickly he cradled his son back into his arms and tucked him beneath his fur coat, close to his chest. He was so cold.

"I'm sorry, son, I'm sorry," he whispered as he gently rocked Hiccup in his arms, sharing his own body warmth with him, gently stroking the little face, melting away the snow with the hotness of his tears. "Please, come back to me."

Hiccup was rigid in his arms and Stoick's hope fell, but then, a faint whimper and the tiniest of movements. Stoick rubbed at the babies belly, breathed his hot breath into his face and finally Hiccup opened his eyes.

"Oh thank Odin," Stoick breathed, clutching his son tighter to his chest as he got up and carried his baby boy home.


End file.
